Turbocharger or Supercharger
10-24-2003, 11:10 PM
#41
Suzuka Master
Power upgrades
There's a 3.5 liter engine upgrade from Rick Case Acura. It swaps the CL-S block for a larger one from an MDX, 10.85:1 custom pistons, uses the heads, intake, exhaust from your CL-S. Not as fast as a s/c but built with Honda reliability/durability. Power is about 1/2 way between stock and Comptech s/c.
Car & Driver tested a modded, s/c'd Comptech CL-S. Here's the link: http://www.caranddriver.com/article....&page_number=1
Car & Driver tested a modded, s/c'd Comptech CL-S. Here's the link: http://www.caranddriver.com/article....&page_number=1
10-24-2003, 11:14 PM
#42
Suzuka Master
C&D test Comptech CL-S
Car & Driver tested a modded, s/c'd Comptech CL-S. Here's the link: http://www.caranddriver.com/article....&page_number=1
Comptech Supercharged Acura 3.2CL Type-S
Blown to the edge of civilized behavior.
BY JOHN PEARLEY HUFFMAN
June 2003
There are two ways to effectively modify a car: Fix what’s wrong, or exaggerate what’s right. What’s wrong with old cars is usually obvious, but the deficiencies of new cars are either endemic or not readily apparent. So, new-car tuners usually concentrate on enhancing what’s already right.
Conceived by Honda Access Americas, the accessories division of Honda R&D Americas, and built with Comptech (which has modified and raced Hondas since 1979), this supercharged Acura 3.2CL Type-S six-speed two-door is a more powerful version of a car that is already the most powerful front-wheel-drive vehicle Honda has ever made. In fact, among current production front-drivers, only Cadillac’s Northstar V-8–powered sedans, the 265-hp 2004 Nissan Maxima, and the 268-hp Volvo S80 T6 are more powerful than the stock 260-hp 3.2CL Type-S and its brother, the 3.2TL Type-S four-door. Adding a blower to the 3.2CL is something like shipping seawater to the Mariana Trench.
The core of Comptech’s supercharger system is Eaton’s 62-cubic-inch Roots-type twin-rotor blower. This is the same type of blower used by GM on its supercharged 3800 V-6 and by other tuners, including Jackson Racing (C/D, “Jackson Racing Supercharged Focus ZX3,” April 2002). Comptech shoves the Eaton to the front of the CL’s engine bay on the driver’s side where it breathes in through Comptech’s “Icebox” cold-air intake and feeds a Comptech manifold and then the stock intake manifold. Driven by a shaft reaching to the passenger’s side where a rubber belt connects it to a supplementary crank pulley, the Eaton spins at slightly more than twice engine speed and, considering the 3.2-liter SOHC VTEC V-6’s robust 10.5:1 compression ratio, pumps in only about 4.5 pounds of boost. The blower’s placement also means that a smaller battery must be used for clearance.
To feed the pressurized engine, Comptech puts a high-pressure pump in the fuel tank, installs a new fuel-pressure regulator, and taps into the engine-control computer with a device that reduces MAP sensor voltage when positive manifold pressure is detected, keeping the computer from going into default mode.
The $4495 supercharger system alone is worth 54 to 57 horsepower at the drive wheels, according to Comptech. But this particular car, built for display at the 2002 SEMA show last fall, also carries Comptech’s headers and down pipes ($1249) and mufflers ($669) to produce a claimed 369 horsepower at 6800 rpm and 302 pound-feet of torque at 5400 rpm at the crank. Considering the modest boost, a 109-hp thump up in output bangs on the edge of credulity.
To contend with the extra thrust, a new clutch and a significantly lighter flywheel ($995) were installed and the suspension fortified with springs ($299) about 10 percent stiffer than stock that lowered the car about one-and-a-half inches; there are revised anti-roll bars ($329) and a shock-tower brace ($379), Koni shocks ($189 each), and camber-adjustment plates ($90 each) at each corner. Deceleration chores were handed to a set of Brembo 13-inch, four-piston front brakes ($2295), and there are 8.0-by-19-inch Maya DTM wheels ($820 each) inside 245/35ZR-19 Michelin Pilot Sport tires ($299 each through the Tire Rack). Discounting the utterly gorgeous prototype body kit and rear spoiler valued at $2000 but unavailable at any price, that’s $16,302 worth of stuff bolted to this CL at a labor cost of $1960. At least the CL Type-S’s $31,050 base price is modest compared with that of cars of similar performance.
On launch, the extra power becomes wheelspin and hop. The limited-slip differential that is standard with the manual-transmission CL Type-S subdues torque steer, but the 2.3-second 0-to-30-mph clocking was identical to that of the blown CL and a stock example tested the same day, and the 5.7-second 0-to-60 time was a scant 0.3 second quicker. The supercharger’s push comes at higher velocities—it gets to 130 mph in just 23.6 seconds compared with the stock machine’s 33.0. And in top-gear acceleration, the trip from 50 to 70 takes just 9.4 seconds as opposed to the stock car’s 11.3-second time. But the start leaves the quarter-mile ET just a half-second quicker than stock at 14.2 seconds with a 104-mph trap speed.
Except for slight blower whine, the supercharged CL’s behavior is practically vicefree. The engine didn’t detonate and trudged through parking lots like a Cushman scooter. The clutch is more sensitive than the stock unit, but the transmission shifts just as sweetly. At part throttle under 4000 rpm, the engine behaves, well, normally. Slam the throttle, though, and it feels like a 440 Six Pack V-8 in a ’69 Dodge Charger.
It’s tough to isolate the suspension tuning from the effect of more aggressive tires. Turn-in seems quicker in the blown CL, the car’s natural understeer is lessened, and the adhesion is obviously greater. There’s some ride deterioration, but it’s tolerable. The oversize brakes and tires knocked just five feet off the stock CL’s 181-foot 70-to-0-mph stopping distance, but their real talent is fade resistance.
The supercharged CL highlights the limitations of a front-wheel-drive chassis. In stock form, the CL is among the best-handling and -performing front-drivers, but throwing more power at it is asking the front wheels to do too much. That this CL retains its dignity says much for its underlying goodness, and about riding the brink of diminishing returns.
Comptech USA, 4717 Golden Foothill Parkway, El Dorado Hills, California 95682; 916–933–1080; www.comptechusa.com.
COMPTECH SUPERCHARGED ACURA 3.2CL TYPE-S
Vehicle type: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 4-passenger, 2-door sedan
Price as tested: $53,462 (base price*: $49,312)
Engine type: supercharged SOHC 24-valve V-6, aluminum block and heads, Honda PGM-FI engine-control system with port fuel injection
Displacement: 196 cu in, 3210cc
Power (mfr’s claim): 369 bhp @ 6800 rpm
Torque (mfr’s claim): 302 lb-ft @ 5400 rpm
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Wheelbase: 106.9 in
Length: 192.0 in
Curb weight: 3500 lb
Zero to 60 mph: 5.7 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 13.2 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 23.6 sec
Street start, 5–60 mph 5.8 sec
Standing 1/4-mile: 14.2 sec @ 104 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 176 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.89 g
EPA fuel economy, city driving: 19 mpg
*Base price includes all performance-enchancing options.
Comptech Supercharged Acura 3.2CL Type-S
Blown to the edge of civilized behavior.
BY JOHN PEARLEY HUFFMAN
June 2003
There are two ways to effectively modify a car: Fix what’s wrong, or exaggerate what’s right. What’s wrong with old cars is usually obvious, but the deficiencies of new cars are either endemic or not readily apparent. So, new-car tuners usually concentrate on enhancing what’s already right.
Conceived by Honda Access Americas, the accessories division of Honda R&D Americas, and built with Comptech (which has modified and raced Hondas since 1979), this supercharged Acura 3.2CL Type-S six-speed two-door is a more powerful version of a car that is already the most powerful front-wheel-drive vehicle Honda has ever made. In fact, among current production front-drivers, only Cadillac’s Northstar V-8–powered sedans, the 265-hp 2004 Nissan Maxima, and the 268-hp Volvo S80 T6 are more powerful than the stock 260-hp 3.2CL Type-S and its brother, the 3.2TL Type-S four-door. Adding a blower to the 3.2CL is something like shipping seawater to the Mariana Trench.
The core of Comptech’s supercharger system is Eaton’s 62-cubic-inch Roots-type twin-rotor blower. This is the same type of blower used by GM on its supercharged 3800 V-6 and by other tuners, including Jackson Racing (C/D, “Jackson Racing Supercharged Focus ZX3,” April 2002). Comptech shoves the Eaton to the front of the CL’s engine bay on the driver’s side where it breathes in through Comptech’s “Icebox” cold-air intake and feeds a Comptech manifold and then the stock intake manifold. Driven by a shaft reaching to the passenger’s side where a rubber belt connects it to a supplementary crank pulley, the Eaton spins at slightly more than twice engine speed and, considering the 3.2-liter SOHC VTEC V-6’s robust 10.5:1 compression ratio, pumps in only about 4.5 pounds of boost. The blower’s placement also means that a smaller battery must be used for clearance.
To feed the pressurized engine, Comptech puts a high-pressure pump in the fuel tank, installs a new fuel-pressure regulator, and taps into the engine-control computer with a device that reduces MAP sensor voltage when positive manifold pressure is detected, keeping the computer from going into default mode.
The $4495 supercharger system alone is worth 54 to 57 horsepower at the drive wheels, according to Comptech. But this particular car, built for display at the 2002 SEMA show last fall, also carries Comptech’s headers and down pipes ($1249) and mufflers ($669) to produce a claimed 369 horsepower at 6800 rpm and 302 pound-feet of torque at 5400 rpm at the crank. Considering the modest boost, a 109-hp thump up in output bangs on the edge of credulity.
To contend with the extra thrust, a new clutch and a significantly lighter flywheel ($995) were installed and the suspension fortified with springs ($299) about 10 percent stiffer than stock that lowered the car about one-and-a-half inches; there are revised anti-roll bars ($329) and a shock-tower brace ($379), Koni shocks ($189 each), and camber-adjustment plates ($90 each) at each corner. Deceleration chores were handed to a set of Brembo 13-inch, four-piston front brakes ($2295), and there are 8.0-by-19-inch Maya DTM wheels ($820 each) inside 245/35ZR-19 Michelin Pilot Sport tires ($299 each through the Tire Rack). Discounting the utterly gorgeous prototype body kit and rear spoiler valued at $2000 but unavailable at any price, that’s $16,302 worth of stuff bolted to this CL at a labor cost of $1960. At least the CL Type-S’s $31,050 base price is modest compared with that of cars of similar performance.
On launch, the extra power becomes wheelspin and hop. The limited-slip differential that is standard with the manual-transmission CL Type-S subdues torque steer, but the 2.3-second 0-to-30-mph clocking was identical to that of the blown CL and a stock example tested the same day, and the 5.7-second 0-to-60 time was a scant 0.3 second quicker. The supercharger’s push comes at higher velocities—it gets to 130 mph in just 23.6 seconds compared with the stock machine’s 33.0. And in top-gear acceleration, the trip from 50 to 70 takes just 9.4 seconds as opposed to the stock car’s 11.3-second time. But the start leaves the quarter-mile ET just a half-second quicker than stock at 14.2 seconds with a 104-mph trap speed.
Except for slight blower whine, the supercharged CL’s behavior is practically vicefree. The engine didn’t detonate and trudged through parking lots like a Cushman scooter. The clutch is more sensitive than the stock unit, but the transmission shifts just as sweetly. At part throttle under 4000 rpm, the engine behaves, well, normally. Slam the throttle, though, and it feels like a 440 Six Pack V-8 in a ’69 Dodge Charger.
It’s tough to isolate the suspension tuning from the effect of more aggressive tires. Turn-in seems quicker in the blown CL, the car’s natural understeer is lessened, and the adhesion is obviously greater. There’s some ride deterioration, but it’s tolerable. The oversize brakes and tires knocked just five feet off the stock CL’s 181-foot 70-to-0-mph stopping distance, but their real talent is fade resistance.
The supercharged CL highlights the limitations of a front-wheel-drive chassis. In stock form, the CL is among the best-handling and -performing front-drivers, but throwing more power at it is asking the front wheels to do too much. That this CL retains its dignity says much for its underlying goodness, and about riding the brink of diminishing returns.
Comptech USA, 4717 Golden Foothill Parkway, El Dorado Hills, California 95682; 916–933–1080; www.comptechusa.com.
COMPTECH SUPERCHARGED ACURA 3.2CL TYPE-S
Vehicle type: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 4-passenger, 2-door sedan
Price as tested: $53,462 (base price*: $49,312)
Engine type: supercharged SOHC 24-valve V-6, aluminum block and heads, Honda PGM-FI engine-control system with port fuel injection
Displacement: 196 cu in, 3210cc
Power (mfr’s claim): 369 bhp @ 6800 rpm
Torque (mfr’s claim): 302 lb-ft @ 5400 rpm
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Wheelbase: 106.9 in
Length: 192.0 in
Curb weight: 3500 lb
Zero to 60 mph: 5.7 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 13.2 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 23.6 sec
Street start, 5–60 mph 5.8 sec
Standing 1/4-mile: 14.2 sec @ 104 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 176 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.89 g
EPA fuel economy, city driving: 19 mpg
*Base price includes all performance-enchancing options.
10-25-2003, 01:25 AM
#43
Censored User
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Miami - just one day, I would like to drive without getting cut off!
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Re: Power upgrades
Originally posted by SpeedyV6
There's a 3.5 liter engine upgrade from Rick Case Acura. It swaps the CL-S block for a larger one from an MDX, 10.85:1 custom pistons, uses the heads, intake, exhaust from your CL-S. Not as fast as a s/c but built with Honda reliability/durability. Power is about 1/2 way between stock and Comptech s/c.
Car & Driver tested a modded, s/c'd Comptech CL-S. Here's the link: http://www.caranddriver.com/article....&page_number=1
There's a 3.5 liter engine upgrade from Rick Case Acura. It swaps the CL-S block for a larger one from an MDX, 10.85:1 custom pistons, uses the heads, intake, exhaust from your CL-S. Not as fast as a s/c but built with Honda reliability/durability. Power is about 1/2 way between stock and Comptech s/c.
Car & Driver tested a modded, s/c'd Comptech CL-S. Here's the link: http://www.caranddriver.com/article....&page_number=1
3.5L upgrades
08-16-2006, 10:43 PM
#47
Burning Brakes
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Pennsylvania
Age: 37
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After reading a few threads in the past about the turbo CLS out there and also threads that MtBikR created. The guy who created this thread better have money to play with if he decides to go either way. I too lazy to read the beginning of this thread again to see if he's autotragic or not but if he is I hope his tranny lives if he were to go Turbo. I sworn I remember seeing a thread about MtBikR having tranny problems.
08-16-2006, 11:13 PM
#48
~HondaF1~
I love my charger, & as some1 mentioning the fact that it's still under warranty saved my ass a few times as to I had several check engine lights towards the beginning that were easy to take care of, under warranty.
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